How to grow lemon verbena
Lemon Verbena (Aloysia citrodora) is one of the more unusual herb varieties we offer in our online herb shop and it is so incredibly undervalued! The sweet, citrusy hit this plant gives is DIVINE, reminiscent of sherbert lemon. Growing to between 2 and 3 metres in height with shiny pointed leaves, they add a great architectural feature to your garden with gorgeous pale purple flowers in the summer. In our eyes, this really is a must have for any kitchen garden.
Where is best to plant lemon verbena in the garden
They love light, airy, free-draining soil, so be sure to avoid any areas of your garden which suffer from water logging as that will not make them happy. Plus, they're a sunshine loving herb so plant them in full sun where possible. Lemon verbena has a limited hardiness in the winter months, so you might want to keep this one in a pretty pot so that it can be brought into a warm greenhouse an protected during the frosty months. Alternatively, you could carefully dig the plant up each year, or add some fleece around the plant to increase its chances of survival.
How to grow lemon verbena
Lemon verbena is a plant best grown on from pot plants or cuttings for the best results. You can take step tip cuttings in lake spring, or divide larger plants in the winter dormant season once they are a few years old. Our lemon verbena plants are supplied in 9cm pots over the course of the spring and summer months to give you the best chance of a thriving herb. All you need to do is simply give it a good water and plant it out into the area you have designated to be its home, be it a pot or in the ground. Ensure you keep on top of watering, particularly while the plant is first establishing in its new home, and during any unexpected heatwaves.
How to prune lemon verbena
It's best to prune your lemon verbena plants during the late spring, once you have seen new growth starting to emerge. This will help your plant to be big, beautiful and bushy, without getting out of control as they can put on an incredible amount of growth once they hit peak season. You'll want to cut away any dead and damaged stems, then reduce the woody stems of the plants down to around 5-10cm in height. This might feel a little harsh just as it's getting going, but the plant will thank you for it in months to come. You can then give your herbs a light price after the first set of flowers start to appear, being careful not to take off more than a third of the plant in total. Then, simply harvest what you need throughout the year to make delicious dishes and drinks.
How to care for lemon verbena in the winter
What you do with your lemon verbena over the winter depends on how much of a risk you want to take. For those living in more milder areas of the UK, you may find your plants do just fine if they're tucked away in a warm corner, beside a wall or in a protected pocket. We'd recommend adding a nice layer of mulch in the late autumn/early winter for a bit of extra care if you're going down this route. For the more precautious herb growers amongst you, you'll want to bring these tasty treats inside. Un unheated greenhouse should do just the trick whilst the plant goes into dormancy. Just be sure to give it a drink of water every couple of weeks so that it doesn't dry out entirely.
And there you have it! With these tips and tricks, your garden flourish with this new sweet and delicious herb in its midst. If you have any other questions about lemon verbena or any of our other super cool herb varieties, just drop us a DM and we’ll get back to you - or, if you really want to get your geek on, why not join our Herb Club?
